"Unforgotten", the new JP Brasca-directed video from CORE 10, the band featuring original KORN drummer David Silveria, can be seen below. The song was produced by Grammy-nominated producer Ulrich Wild, who has previously worked with WHITE ZOMBIE, PANTERA, DEFTONES and STATIC-X.

Silveria is joined in CORE 10 by Sean Lenhoff and Duncan Nisbet on vocals, Chris Dorame on bass, Joe Taback on guitar and Ronnie King on keyboards.

Lenhoff told BackStage360 that CORE 10 opted to have two singers instead of one in order "to create [its] own sound, something original."

Describing CORE 10's sound as a fusion of metal, rock and punk, Lenhoff said: "We never wanted to pigeonhole ourselves into one genre. It's so hard to make a living as a band and a musician now, you just take your influences and you just run with it. Why not create something for everybody but having continuity still in what you're doing?"

Asked how he first got involved with CORE 10, Silveria said: "I've known Sean for about… probably fifteen, twenty years from downtown Huntington Beach days. And he kept sending me MP3s of songs, and the more I listened to it, it was kind of, like, you either love it or hate it. I was kind of conflicted when I first heard it. And I would show it to my wife and said, 'What do you think about this?' 'Cause I didn't really understand it at first. And the more I listened to it, the more I liked it. Now they come over and play, and I come out and my wife is all giddy and excited going, 'I love that song. It's one of the best songs you guys have ever done.' And now I'm just in love with the music. So I'm all in now."

Earlier in the year, CORE 10 released a video for the song "Act Of Valor". The clip, which had almost forty thousand views in the first few days after being posted on YouTube, was met with overwhelmingly negative response from KORN fans, many of whom questioned everything from CORE 10's musical direction to the quality of the recording itself.

CORE 10's current lineup made its live debut on April 1 at Tiki Bar in Costa Mesa, California.

The band will next perform on September 23 at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California.

The official lyric video for the song "Achingly Beautiful" from U.K. extreme metallers CRADLE OF FILTH can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's twelfth album, "Cryptoriana - The Seductiveness Of Decay", which will be released on September 22 via Nuclear Blast.

Commented singer Dani Filth: "Influenced by the stories of E.F. Benson, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, H. Rider Haggard, Oscar Wilde, Arthur Machen and Algernon Blackwood, to shame but a few, this song concerns itself with a spectral guest at a great masked ball who, deeply embedded in his cruel libertine nature, attends merely for merciless, seductive sport, but instead discovers the woman of his dreams and both bewitching the other, finds in her his dark, immortal equal. "I love this song as it has a very old-school CRADLE vibe for me, both lyrically and musically, and reeking hideously of the Vampiric, the dropdown section in the middle is pure 'A Gothic Romance'."

"Cryptoriana - The Seductiveness Of Decay" was recorded at Grindstone Studios, Suffolk, U.K. by the very honorable Scott Atkins, who has been the resident go-to producer for CRADLE OF FILTH for several albums. Dani Filth sat in during the mix, serving up flaming mugs of teas, making the studio couch his own and lending his ears when necessary.

Commented Dani: "The album is deeply infused with Victorian gothic horror and thus the title is a reflection of that. 'Cryptoriana' implies the Victorian's infatuation with the supernatural, the grave and the ghoulish. And the subtitle 'The Seductiveness Of Decay' further cements this attraction to death and the glittering lengthy process of self-annihilation."

The video for the album's first single, "Heartbreak And Séance", can be seen below. Dani stated about the clip: "Working with such an artistic director as Artūrs Bērziņš was indeed an honor, as the video shoot was very extensively planned, involving a myriad of extras and crew, make-up girls and set builders, a crow, some well-behaved snakes and a considerable amount of snow, candles, water, trees, naked bodies, lamentable mourners, as well as all being submerged in suitably gothic landscapes and vistas. And the fact that we travelled to Riga in Latvia to film it was also very unique and interesting. The video itself is fantastic, drawing from the darkly erotic imagery of the album artwork and bringing it to richly technicoloured classical life. We had such a blast shooting it, as the accompanying photos attest to..."

Bērziņš is the mastermind behind the "Cryptoriana - The Seductiveness Of Decay" artwork, photography and videography — best known for his defiant neo-symbolism raster graphics and oil paintings; postmodern interpretations of classic myths. He has been proclaimed as a "sacred monster of Latvian postmodernism".

CRADLE OF FILTH has also announced its first full-scale U.K. and Ireland tour in years, starting in Belfast, Northern Ireland on October 30.

SINSAENUM, the extreme death metal project featuring DRAGONFORCE bassist Frédéric Leclercq and former SLIPKNOT drummer Joey Jordison, will release a new EP, "Ashes", on November 10 via earMUSIC. The effort contains over thirty minutes of mind-blowing music, featuring three brand new and EP-exclusive songs, which all display SINSAENUM's love for the roots of death metal and extreme music. Additionally, two previously exclusive Japanese bonus tracks can finally be enjoyed by the rest of the world. To top it all off, renowned French producer and musician Frederic Duquesne (MASS HYSTERIA, guitar) has provided a remix for "Dead Souls". The cover artwork was drawn by Maxime Taccardi, a dark, twisted artist who managed to capture the essence of SINSAENUM's music. "'Ashes' is showing a more mature version of our music, and also an angrier side," said Leclercq. "A lot angrier. We wanted the production to be rawer. Nothing is polite here. We just want to grab the listeners by the throat and spit our hatred into their face. With this EP, we took things further. The black metal vibe is more present in the three new songs, as are the synths; they reinforce the eerie side of our music. Experimenting with keys and machine is not something we are afraid of. Musical darkness can come in many ways."

SINSAENUM's current LP, "Echoes Of The Tortured", which was nominated as "Best Debut" by Metal Hammer Germany, is an album that has been praised worldwide as one of the freshest and finest approaches to death metal. Following the disc's 2016 release, SINSAENUM now goes beyond and has truly reached the next level.

With these impressive credentials, it is hard not to label SINSAENUM a "supergroup," since the project embodies the joint venture of Leclercq and Jordison. The rest of the band is of no less importance and credibility: Attila Csihar (MAYHEM, vocals), Sean Zatorsky (DÅÅTH, vocals), Seth Heimoth (bass), and Stephane Buriez (LOUDBLAST, guitar) – all of which are well respected in their fields – complete the ensemble, making SINSAENUM premium-level heavy metal.

"Ashes" track listing:

01. Ashes02. Monarch Of Death03. 2099 (Heretics) 04. Degeneration *05. King Of The Desperate Lands *06. Dead Souls **

* Previously Japanese bonus only** Frédéric Duquesne remix SINSAENUM is:

Sean Z (DÅÅTH, ex-CHIMAIRA): vocalsAttila Csihar (MAYHEM): vocalsFrédéric Leclercq (DRAGONFORCE): guitar, bass, synth, vocals Stephane Buriez (LOUDBLAST): guitarHeimoth (SETH): bassJoey Jordison (VIMIC, ex-SLIPKNOT): drums

"To Your Brethren In The Dark", a brand new song from Norwegian black metallers SATYRICON, can be streamed below. The track is taken from the band's ninth album, "Deep Calleth Upon Deep", which will be released on September 22 via Napalm Records.

SATYRICON vocalist Sigurd "Satyr" Wongraven said: "'To Your Brethren In The Dark' is definitely one of the flagship songs on the record. This is about emotion, our nature, the spirits, the autumn, the somber and rainy days, those who we lost and the ones who we have not met yet. You could say it is a tribute to the sorrow in man and to the drama of the nature we surround ourselves with. A song for the dark towers of the past and those who will rise in the future. Pass the torch to your brethren in the dark."

Recorded in Oslo, Norway and Vancouver, Canada, during early 2017 and mixed together with revered studio guru Mike Fraser (who previously worked on SATYRICON's 2006 album, "Now, Diabolical"), "Deep Calleth Upon Deep" is not just a new collection of songs from one of extreme music's most enduring and reliable bands: this is a wholesale reinvention and a brand new era in SATYRICON history.

"Deep Calleth Upon Deep" track listing:

01. Midnight Serpent02. Blood Cracks Open The Ground03. To Your Brethren In The Dark04. Deep Calleth Upon Deep05. The Ghost Of Rome06. Dissonant07. Black Wings And Withering Gloom08. Burial Rite Satyr, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2015, says: "Approaching this release, what I always kept in mind is that either this is the beginning of something new or it's gonna be my last record. If this is going to be the last, then it needs to be something special. If there are more records, then I'd better make sure that this is so different from the last one that it feels like a new beginning. I think it's really, really dark, very spiritual and filled with confidence and energy." "Deep Calleth Upon Deep" is a profound statement about the essence of SATYRICON's music and the eternal value of art itself. Satyr continues: "The way that I see it is that for any art, be it SATYRICON or any other form of art with substance, in order for you to be able to inhale and completely understand it, it will take a little bit of you as well. If you get it all after a couple of listens, you know that it probably won't stay with you. So the title is saying, 'From the depth of the people making this record to the depth of the listener...' If you want to take part in this journey, you should be prepared to dig deep down in the darkest corner of your soul with us." The "Deep Calleth Upon Deep" front cover is an obscure drawing from 1898 by perhaps the greatest Norwegian artist of all time, Edvard Munch.

SATYRICON drummer Kjetil-Vidar "Frost" Haraldstad recently told "The Jasta Show" about "Deep Calleth Upon Deep": "This is an album that we have been really working a lot with for a long time. It's all about getting the right expression for each and every song.

"It has never been anything that we've discussed in the band, but at least I personally feel that every song has a life of its own, a very strong and unique identity," he continued. "This album is really about giving life to those eight songs that constitute it.

"Like with every SATYRICON album, I guess it's very, very diverse, and this is more true than ever with the new one," he said. "In particular, when it comes to this identity bit, I feel the songs, even if they fit extremely well together in a compilation of songs, each and every one, it's very, very different from the others — almost like human beings are different from each other."

According to Frost, the more varied approach of SATYRICON's 2013 self-titled album was a musical precursor to the exploratory nature of the band's upcoming disc.

"I realize that the previous albums opened lots of doors for us," he said. "There was a reason that we chose to name the [last] album after the band itself. Basically, we felt that somehow SATYRICON became a very complete band with that album. We managed to bring that dynamic element into the band that somehow had been missing a little, and we felt that when that was there, it was like we had all the basic components that should constitute SATYRICON. And as those doors were opened with that album, we then found ourselves in a situation where we were, like, roaming about in those different rooms. And this new album is a result of discovering and searching through and basically exploring new territory and making it ours."

SATYRICON has already announced a European tour for September/October to coincide with the release of "Deep Calleth Upon Deep".

"Drinkin' With Jesus", a brand new song from FOZZY — the band featuring WWE wrestling superstar Chris Jericho alongside members of STUCK MOJO — can be streamed below. The track is taken from FOZZY's upcoming album, "Judas", which will be released on October 13 via Century Media.

Jericho states: "'Drinkin' With Jesus' is a song we specifically wanted to put second on the record because it, quite simply, kicks ass! It's the type of song you crank up with the top down as you're speeding down the highway at midnight. While 'Judas' is deep and heavy, 'Drinkin'' punches you in the face in a different way. Lyrically, this song is about drinking alone, just hanging out with the Lord and having a few cocktails. It's got some dark lyrics, but it's overall a fun song with a great riff and some killer solos. So enjoy and CRANK IT UP!"

Regarding what fans can expect from the new disc, Jericho told "The Front Row Report": "It's definitely the next step. It's an extension. It's more of an evolving FOZZY. We really put a lot of stock in bands like U2 and GUNS N' ROSES and METALLICA, and I think the best example might be David Bowie, where there's always different styles, different eras, and we like that too. And we're not completely changing what we do. But there's different more melodies and this is very much a hookier record. There's not as many guitar solos on the record, but it's still heavy and melodic. It's an evolution from 'Do You Wanna Start A War' [2014] as much as 'Do You Wanna Start A War' was an evolution from 'Sin And Bones' [2012]. I think it's a great trilogy of records that shows a lot of growth, but it's still very heavy and very melodic. Like I said, the trilogy of records — from 'Sin And Bones' to 'Judas' — I think they're all very great records that have a little bit different elements to them all, which is a key to longevity for sure."

Jericho also talked about the songwriting process for "Judas", which was composed during late 2015 and most of 2016 while FOZZY took a break from the road.

"We never really sit in a room and write," he said. "In the past, I would write my parts and send them over to [guitarist] Rich [Ward] and Rich would send it back to me. Also, we had Johnny Andrews writing with us for the whole record. He wrote 'Lights Go Out' on the last record, so we wanted him involved. He produced the record, so Rich and him did a lot of sessions [in the studio where they spent many hours] jamming it out… We wanted to give him total control and let him produce the record and make the record that he thought we should make, and we're really happy that we did."

FOZZY recently announced the return of bassist Paul Di Leo. Paul previously played with FOZZY between 2011 and 2014 and appeared on the group's last two studio albums.

After "Do You Wanna Start A War"'s release, Di Leo was replaced on the road by Jeff Rouse and later by Randy Drake.

"Do You Wanna Start A War" sold around 5,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 54 on the Billboard 200 chart. The CD arrived in July 2014 via Century Media.

BEHEMOTH frontman Adam "Nergal "Darski has urged the public to reserve judgment as to the guilt or innocence of members of the Polish death metal band DECAPITATED who are accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a woman on a tour bus in Washington.

According to court documents obtained by The Spokesman-Review, the woman alleged she was gang-raped by the musicians in their tour bus bathroom after DECAPITATED's August 31 concert with THY ART IS MURDER at The Pin concert venue in downtown Spokane as part of the two bands' "Double Homicide" tour. The woman said entered the bus for drinks with the band before each member forced themselves on her.

Earlier today, Nergal, a fellow Pole, took to his Facebook page to point out the obvious: no one, at this point, has any idea whether or not the allegations of rape against DECAPITATED are true. The musicians in question are merely being investigated and are innocent in the eyes of the law until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Nergal wrote: "And justice for all?

"Touring life may get crazy every now and then.

"I was not on the DECAPITATED bus. I didn't talk to anyone and I do not know the other people involved.

"I don't want to speculate but I have learned in both my personal life and in many years of touring that people are complicated.

"I personally have never forced anyone to have sex with me and there should be a NO TOLERANCE policy used in such cases, no question. But I do know the DECAPITATED guys, and in my experience, they are bunch of good, decent and hard-working fellas.

"IF in fact they committed a crime, they will have to deal with the consequences, but please keep in mind that only some of the people involved have had their voices heard thus far. So, PLEASE take a breath, count to 10 and THINK before you start stigmatizing, accusing and judging them publicly for something they may not have even done!

"I was arrested, I spent night in a Russian jail where my passport and phone were confiscated. I know the feeling and I can only imagine what horror and trauma my friends and everyone involved are going through now.

"I profoundly hope this whole case will end up positive for them as soon as possible and they will return home safe.

"Stay strong and hold on tight!"

All four members of DECAPITATED — Michal Lysejko, 31, Waclaw Kieltyka, 35, Rafal Piotrowski, 31, and Hubert Wiecek, 30 — were arrested at around 2 a.m. Saturday in Santa Ana, California after performing at the Observatory.

They have since released a collective statement proclaimed their innocence while condemning the hatred directed at them on social media by individuals who are not familiar with all the facts of the case.

Los Angeles County jail records show the four men were being held without bail. They were awaiting extradition to Spokane.

In court Tuesday afternoon, the bandmembers took turns in front of a judge agreeing to be extradited to Washington, according to KABC. They all had a Polish translator while a representative from the Polish consulate sat in the courtroom.




And justice for all?

Touring life may get crazy every now and then. I was not on the Decapitated bus. I didn't talk to...

Posted by Adam Nergal Darski on Thursday, September 14, 2017

Crushing audiences across the globe with their driving force and energetic stage presence, Melbourne thrashers Mason deliver commanding performances that has taken them on tours across Australia and beyond in Asia, Europe plus Canada where they have shared the stage with the likes of Harlott, Havok, Accept, Revocation, Mutank and Annihilator.

Drawing influence from The Big Four and The Bay Area, Mason encapsulates the '80s thrash sound mixed with fast tempos and a dominating rhythm section. Unleashing their debut self-titled EP in 2011, Mason are not ones to let the dust settle. Their ten track debut album, Warhead was released in 2013 and included guest guitarist Jeff Loomis (Arch Enemy, Nevermore). In 2016, Mason jumped straight back into the studio to record their second EP, Unmerciful, the perfect follow-up showcasing the band’s ability to fuse fast and aggressive metal along with melodic guitar work that captivated and reinforced their stronghold on a global level.

Now in 2017, their second full length Impervious, mixed and mastered by Erin Hamidovic (Devin Townsend Project, Animals As Leaders, Periphery) is crashing the gates and kicking the mosh pit into overdrive with its official release set for October 6th. The nine glorious thrashing tracks will be blazing an even bigger trail for this Aussie powerhouse.

Vocalist and guitarist Jimmy Benson comments: “During the demo process we wrote a lot of material, but the majority made the Impervious album minus one or two songs. We spent a lot of time fine tuning the songs and making sure they kicked ass! For this album, we focused mainly on trimming the fat and stepping up the energy and tempos. Fast, focused and heavy! For those wanting to know more about this release, Impervious touches on so many topics from suicide, death, terrorism and more events that happen to people around the world. When ya look at the front cover, it is a symbol of character and strength of a boy that goes about his everyday life in the worst conditions and does what is normal to him to get by day to day. To sum it up, this new album is powerful and holds a strong message from start to finish.”

The band's latest music video "Cross This Path" features live clips from their cross Canada tour with Annihilator and Mutank this past June, and can be seen below.

Tracklisting:

"Eligos"
"Burn"
"Tears Of Tragedy"
"The Afterlife"
"Impervious"
"Cross This Path"
"Sacrificed"
"Hellbent On Chaos"
"Created To Kill"

Impervious CD pre-orders can be placed on Mason's official website; digital downloads will be available on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify and all major online retailers on October 6th.

Also check out Mason's first video in support of Impervious, for the song "Tears Of Tragedy":

 

 

Sticking its head out of the riff lair, Beldam, the Virginia-based sludge metal band is reforming, relocating to Seattle in October 2017 and releasing new album Pasung on Horror Pain Gore Death Productions in early 2018. The band has also parted ways with its original bassist.

Sophomore album Pasung, the second release on Mike Juliano's powerhouse metal label HPGD Productions, was recorded at The Bomb Shelter in Nashville and engineered by the extraordinary Drew Carroll, the man who also recorded Beldam's original five-song demo released in 2015.

"This album represents a much sludgier sound," said Grahm Reynolds, lead guitarist and songwriter. "We were really intentional in taking a full year to record and refine the songs for Pasung. There was heavy pre-production and a significant focus on tracking the record," added Reynolds. "The final result really delivers on who we are as a band."

Clocking in at just over 50 minutes of rocket-fueled, paint peeling sludge, Pasung, captures the best of Beldam, while positioning the band to take it to the next level in Seattle. Stay tuned!

Beldam released debut album Still The Wretched Linger in 2016 on HPGD Productions.

 

Doro Pesch says that her forthcoming album will contain "more anthems than usual," and will include a guest appearance by her former WARLOCK bandmate Tommy Bolan.

The long-awaited follow-up to 2012's "Raise Your Fist" will arrive in August 2018 and will be the German singer's first release since last year's "Love's Gone To Hell" single.

Speaking to Capital Chaos TV, Doro stated about her upcoming disc (hear audio below): "It's eighty percent done, with some great guests on it and many anthems — actually, more anthems than usual. And, yeah, some heavy and fast songs, some dark, romantic, heartbreaking ballads. There's a whole spectrum between the super-hard and some dark, very melodic stuff."

Asked which special guests fans can expect to hear on her next album and if the record will include any cover versions, Doro said: "I don't know yet if there will be a cover song. There might be a cover song of somebody I love so much — it was actually my very first concert I attended in my life, a rock concert. So it's something which I might wanna do. And special guests, we have a couple of people in the making, but I don't wanna talk too much about it, because I'm too nervous. If it wouldn't work out, everybody would be so disappointed. But definitely one guest guitar player will be my old guitar player Tommy Bolan. We have a song in the making and he will definitely play some great solos on the new record. So that's carved in stone."

Doro recently told the "SixX Strings" radio show that her forthcoming album would contain a special song featuring guest appearances by a number of prominent metal musicians, including Johan Hegg from AMON AMARTH, Mille Petrozza of KREATOR and SABATON's Joakim Brodén. She said: "It's a great anthem — I think it could even top [WARLOCK's classic track] 'All We Are' — and everybody's singing on it. And this could be really, really good. It's hooky like hell. And we have some other guests — great people. I can't tell you too much, because when it doesn't work out, then everybody would be so disappointed. But it's all in the making right now, and, yeah, I promise a killer album. Many great guitar players as well."

Pesch is currently celebrating the thirtieth anniversary of WARLOCK's "Triumph And Agony" album by performing the LP in its entirety at select shows around the globe.

Doro is joined on the "Triumph And Agony" thirtieth-anniversary tour by Bolan alongside bassist Nick Douglas, drummer Johnny Dee, guitarist Bas Maas and guitarist/keyboardist Luca Princiotta.

"Raise Your Fist" boasted guest appearances by MOTÖRHEAD's Lemmy Kilmister and OZZY OSBOURNE/FIREWIND guitarist Gus G., and artwork by British artist and longtime Doro collaborator Geoffrey Gillespie.

In addition to three versions of the title track, the six-track "Love's Gone To Hell" maxi single also contained two live tracks: "Rock Till Death", featuring Hansi Kürsch (BLIND GUARDIAN) and "Save My Soul".

Michigan post-hardcore outfit WE CAME AS ROMANS will release its fifth album, "Cold Like War", on October 20 through SharpTone Records.

According to a press release, the disc represents adversity — in all of its various forms. It is a thrilling, energetic and immensely catchy compendium of songs that run the full gambit of emotion — aggression to sorrow, love to hate — to capture the fullest extent of the conflict and turmoil WE CAME AS ROMANS endured to make it to this point in their careers and their lives.

"'Cold Like War' is about struggle, those trials," says guitarist and songwriter Joshua Moore. "They can turn us towards each other, towards those we love, towards those who have supported us. Because the last two years to us have felt like this giant war — an internal war — to figure out the right path for our band… to figure out how to stay together and be happy again."

The video for the "Cold Like War" title track can be seen below.

"Cold Like War" track listing:

01. Vultures With Clipped Wings02. Cold Like War 03. Two Hands 04. Lost In The Moment 05. Foreign Fire 06. Wasted Age 07. Encoder08. If There's Something To See (feat. Eric Vanlerberghe from I PREVAIL)09. Promise Me 10. Learning To Survive

French melodic death-thrash metal band NO RETURN will release its new album, "The Curse Within", on November 17 via Mighty Music.

The official lyric video for the disc's first single, "The Crimson Rider", can be seen below.

Formed in 1989, NO RETURN recorded its first album, 1990's "Psychological Torment", in Germany with CORONER drummer and Marky Marquis as art director. The band then produced the second album, 1992's "Contamination Rises", at Morrisound Studios in Tampa, Florida with the help of Scott Burns.

Ever since, the band has kept on sharing its passion for music, performing alongside such bands as ARCH ENEMY, SAMAEL, NAPALM DEATH, SEPULTURA, CORONER, MOTÖRHEAD and many others, all while regularly releasing new albums.

In March 2015, they released "Fearless Walk To Rise", produced by Jacob Hansen (VOLBEAT, ABORTED, PRETTY MAIDS). Several tours followed this release, including a French tour that closed with a performance on the main stage of Hellfest. Two other European tours also followed, one with DEW-SCENTED and ANGELUS APATRIDA in October 2015, the other with ONSLAUGHT and MORS PRINCIPIUM EST in September 2016.

NO RETURN is:

Alain Clément - GuitarDavid Barbosa - BassJoël Barbosa - DrumsGeoffroy Lebon - GuitarMick Caesare - Vocals

Century Media Records has announced the signing of California's death metal act SKELETAL REMAINS. The band's third studio album will be released in the spring. The disc is being tracked at Trench Studios (ABYSMAL DAWN, EXHUMED, HIRAX) in California and will be mixed by Dan Swanö at Unisound Studio (ASPHYX, DISSECTION, BLOODBATH).

The as-yet-untitled effort will be made available via Dark Descent Records in North America and Century Media Records in the rest of the world. "We're extremely excited and honored to announce our signing with Century Media Records and Dark Descent Records," said SKELETAL REMAINS.

"We'd like to thank Rico and the FDA family for everything they have done for us and helped us with in the past few years!

"We will be going into the studio record our next album in late October, so expect a release around spring next year.

"Thank you all for the support and we'll be seeing you out on the road real soon!" "Death metal is an integral part of Century Media's DNA since day one," said Stefan Franke of Century Media Records in Europe.

"The label owes its early '90s success to acts like ASPHYX, GRAVE, UNLEASHED, MORGOTH and TIAMAT, and today holds one of the most impressive rosters within the genre including bands like AT THE GATES, ABORTED, DEICIDE, NECROPHOBIC, VAMPIRE, TRIBULATION, ENTOMBED A.D., DESERTED FEAR, IMPLORE, VALLENFYRE, BROKEN HOPE and many more.

"SKELETAL REMAINS have proven themselves live and on their excellent first two records turning influences from PESTILENCE, DEMOLITION HAMMER, DEATH, OBITUARY and early GORGUTS into one hell of a lethal combination.

"After hearing some pre-production demos, you can rest assured: the deadliest is yet to come! Welcome to the family!" SKELETAL REMAINS formed as ANTHROPOPHAGY back in 2011 and released the two much-lauded studio albums — "Beyond The Flesh" (2012) and "Condemned To Misery" (2015) — via German label FDA Rekotz. They constantly toured Europe, the U.S. and Japan, and performed at renowned festivals as Maryland Deathfest, Party.San, Brutal Assault, Obscene Extreme and Hellfest.

EVANESCENCE has released a new single called "Imperfection". Taken from the band's next album, "Synthesis", which is due on November 10, the song features full orchestration in a completely synthetic world of beats and sounds, with help from arranger and composer David Campbell. "Synthesis" will feature two new EVANESCENCE songs — including "Imperfection" — in addition to fan favorites re-recorded with a live orchestra and electronica.

The "Synthesis Live" tour will launch this fall beginning October 14 on the West Coast. Like the album, "Synthesis Live" will feature a reimagining of some of EVANESCENCE's best-loved songs with the spotlight on full orchestra, electronics combined with the band and Amy Lee's virtuoso piano and voice.

"This is a total passion project for me. There are so many layers in our music, underneath the huge drums and guitars," explained Lee. "I've always wanted to shine a light on some of the gorgeous David Campbell arrangements and programming elements in our songs, and that idea snowballed into completely re-doing them with full orchestra, not just strings, elaborate programming and experimentation.

"This will be our first time touring with orchestra and I'm so excited to perform this way — really focus on the vocals, and the emotion and the story we've built over the years. I'm also really excited about the new material on the album. Besides the two new songs, there are some really beautiful instrumental in-between moments. The whole thing flows like a big, dynamic soundtrack."

Lee told Graspop.be about "Synthesis": "It's different in a way that it's still coming from the roots of what EVANESCENCE was conceived to be,. It's really a beautiful project. A lot of our old songs are getting a whole new life in a way where we're getting to experience the focus being this beautiful, full orchestra. It's also a lot of electronic, cool elements — parts that have always been part of our music. It hasn't been full orchestra before — it's just been mainly strings — but just taking it to very beautiful, classical and epic and groovy place. Oh, it feels so good. There's some new stuff on it too, but it's mostly old stuff [reimagined]."

Lee also talked in more detail about the making of "Synthesis", explaining: "As far as the conception, basically, you work in demo land first and just create the arrangements of songs. I went through all the master sessions of, say, 'Bring Me To Life', and [I would] pull out all the stuff and listen to it and then chop it up and decide, 'Oh, maybe this part needs to be longer. Maybe this part at the beginning will be just strings and piano.' Just figure out what you're gonna do and build a map. And working with David Campbell, who has done all the string arrangements for EVANESCENCE for all three albums now doing full orchestra, just going back and forth with him and our producer Will and then each other, just throwing ideas in a Dropbox and basically just playing tennis back and forth for months. We finally recorded the orchestra. It sounds just gorgeous. I can't wait to finish the thing."

On September 29, BLACK SABBATH will release "The Ten Year War", a limited-edition vinyl box set, via BMG. The set brings together their eight Ozzy Osbourne-fronted albums, plus a swathe of other rarities, all housed within exclusive artwork created by renowned street artist, graphic designer and activist Shepard Fairey.

A "The Ten Year War" unboxing video, courtesy of Black Sabbath Online's Joe Siegler, can be seen below.

Despite BLACK SABBATH's multi-million selling albums and rabid fan base throughout the seventies, this adulation wasn't always mirrored by the music press at the time. The band received more than their fair share of criticism, prompting them to publish "The Ten Year War" brochure; a playful dig at journalists with the witty tagline "more good press than most — more bad press than any." The brochure is reproduced in full for the box set and is one of the many exclusive items held within that also includes:

8 x vinyl LPs meticulously reproduced in their original sleeves, remastered by renowned mastering engineer Andy Pearce from the original tapes and pressed on 180 gram splatter-colored vinyl, each LP with unique and individual colouring.

* Black Sabbath* Paranoid* Master Of Reality (including original fold-out colour poster)* Vol. 4* Sabbath Bloody Sabbath* Sabotage* Technical Ecstasy* Never Say Die!

2 x rare 7" singles, reproduced in their original sleeves:

* Japanese version of "Evil Woman (Don't Play Your Games With Me)" / "Black Sabbath".* Chilean version of "Paranoid"/"The Wizard" (only 100 copies of the original radio promo were pressed).

Crucifix-shaped BLACK SABBATH USB stick, exclusive to this box set, which can be worn round the neck and contains MQA high definition audio of the first eight BLACK SABBATH albums.

The extremely rare "The Ten Year War" brochure, reproduced from the original publication.

Hardback book, featuring accolades from the cream of rock royalty, coupled with official and candid iconic photography of the band during their 1970s tours, recording sessions and photo shoots.

"Tenth Anniversary World Tour" 1978 official program, impeccably reproduced.

Reprinted tour poster from the 1972 Seattle Centre Arena show.

Box set is individually numbered.

Northwest Indiana’s Cloakroom have released a video for “Big World”, a track from their second album, Time Well, out now via Relapse Records. The new clip is available for streaming below.

Time Well is available on CD/2xLP/Digital. Physical orders and exclusive bundles are available via Relapse.com at this location and digital orders are available via Bandcamp here.

Time Well tracklisting:

“Gone But Not Entirely”
“Big World”
“Concrete Gallery”
“Seedless Star”
“Sickle Moon Blues”
“Hymnal”
“The Sun Won’t Let Us Go”
“Time Well”
“52Hz Whale”
“The Passenger”

“Big World” video:

“Concrete Gallery” video:

“The Sun Won’t Let Us Go” video:

“Seedless Star” video:

Cloakroom live dates:

September
29 - Kalamazoo, MI - Bell’s Brewery
30 - Toronto, ON - The Garrison

October
1 - Montreal, QC - La Vitrola
3 - Boston, MA - Middle East
4 - Brooklyn, NY - St. Vitus
6 - Philadelphia, PA - Philamoca
7 - Washington, DC - Comet Ping Pong
8 - Cleveland, OH - Mahall’s

Swedish heavy metallers, Ram, will release their new album, Rod, on November 3rd via Metal Blade Records. Watch A lyric video for the first single, "Gulag", below.

The album can be pre-ordered here in the following formats:

- Jewelcase CD
- Digipak CD
- 180g black vinyl
- orange red vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 500 copies)
-- lame splatter vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 200 copies)
- red brown marbled vinyl (ebay-exclusive - limited to 100 copies)
- transparent orange vinyl (USA exclusive - limited to 100 copies)
- box-set (limited to 500 copies) with the album on orange-brown/black-marbled vinyl and digipak CD, plus a flag, a back patch, a photo card (hand signed by all members), and the Monuments Of Masters 7" featuring covers of Venom ("In League With Satan") and Exciter ("Beyond The Gates Of Doom").

* exclusive bundles with a shirt, plus digital options are also available

Ram comments about Rod: "We are very proud to release our fifth studio album entitled Rod. On this album for the first time ever we wrote a conceptual story over 6 songs, something that we always wanted to do but never got right. This album contains probably our most epic moments to date but it is still definitely Heavy Metal Tyranny!"

Regarding the first single, "Gulag", Ram adds: "'Gulag' has a definite old-school European heavy metal vibe to it. The song shines a light on the hypocrisy of collectivism, and takes a stand for the one who lives and thinks for one self, not for ideology or dogmas of the masses. As one can see in the lyric video for the song most members of Ram were raised during the golden age of home computers!"

Rod tracklisting:

“Declaration Of Independence”
“On Wings Of No Return”
“Gulag”
“A Throne At Midnight”
“Ramrod The Destroyer, Pt. 1: Anno Infinitus”
“Ramrod The Destroyer, Pt. 2: Ignitor”
“Ramrod The Destroyer, Pt. 3: The Cease to Be”
“Ramrod The Destroyer, Pt. 4: Voices of Death”
“Ramrod The Destroyer, Pt. 5: Incinerating Storms”
“Ramrod The Destroyer, Pt. 6: Ashes”

“Gulag” lyric video:

Ram lineup:

Oscar Carlquist: Vocals
Morgan Pettersson: Drums
Harry Granroth: Guitar
Martin Jonsson: Guitar
Tobias Petterson: Bass

Lunatic Soul, the solo project of Riverside leader Mariusz Duda, will release their fifth album, Fractured, on October 6th via Kscope. A video for the album track “Anymore” is available for streaming below.

Mariusz Duda, the architect behind Lunatic Soul, comments: “Lunatic Soul has changed and if I were to describe this music, I’d call it dark melancholic trance with more electronics and more powerful sounds. But there will also be some lyrical fragments, and a couple of tracks will feature a symphonic orchestra I have worked with for the first time in my career. The new Lunatic Soul album will be brave, rich and musically very intense, a beginning of a new style rather than a continuation of the previous releases. I am under the impression that all my music experiences have led me to this place and that it will be one of the best albums I have ever made.

“Although I’m still a conscious prisoner of my own aesthetic, this time you can really hear some differences. My soul and body demanded that I settle accounts with the recent past, piece together what had been scattered, glue up the broken bits, stitch up the tears. Tell a story of how it felt when everything shattered into smithereens.”

Fractured will be released worldwide on Kscope and on Mystic Production in Poland. Pre-order options here.

Tracklisting:

“Blood On The Tightrope”
“Anymore”
“Crumbling Teeth And The Owl Eyes”
“Red Light Escape”
“Fractured”
“A Thousand Shards Of Heaven”
“Battlefield”
“Moving On”

“Anymore” video:

“Fractured” video:

Teaser:

(Photo - Radek Zawadzki)

Archspire have released an official karaoke video for “Calamus Will Animate”, a track from the band’s new album, Relentless Mutation, out on September 22nd. Watch below:

Archspire guitarists Dean Lamb and Tobi Morelli are streaming a freshly filmed play-through video of the new track "Human Murmuration". The clip, a dual camera feature, can be seen below:

Regarding the track, the band comments, "'Human Murmuration' is the second track off our upcoming release Relentless Mutation, and also the second song we wrote for the album. This spacy, sometimes ethereal jam comes with some pretty groove-heavy parts to balance things out. It was one of those songs that took a long time to put together, but once we were in studio listening to the final version, it became clear that this song had something different. We are looking forward to sharing the full album with you on September 22nd through Season Of Mist. Stay tech!"

Relentless Mutation will see a worldwide release on September 22nd. The album was recorded and engineered by Dave Otero at Flatline Studios (Cattle Decapitation, Cephalic Carnage, Allegaeon) and features artwork from Eliran Kantor (Hatebreed, Soulfly, Hate Eternal). Pre-orders for Relentless Mutation can be placed at this location.

Tracklisting:

"Involuntary Doppelgänger"
"Human Murmuration"
"Remote Tumour Seeker"
"Relentless Mutation"
"The Mimic Well"
"Calamus Will Animate"
"A Dark Horizontal"

Catch Archspire live in concert as part of the Bloodletting Tour, featuring headliners Origin, as well as opening acts Defeated Sanity, Dyscarnate, Visceral Disgorge, and The Kennedy Veil.

Tour dates:

October
20 - The Riot Room - Kansas City, MO
21 - Club Garibaldi - Milwaukee, WI
22 -  Cobra Lounge - Chicago, IL
23 - The Token Lounge - Westland, MI
24 - Montage Music Hall - Rochester, NY
25 -  Bungalow - Manchester, NH
26 -  Saint Vitus Bar - New York, NY
27 -  Stanhope House - Stanhope, NJ
29 -  Motorco Music Hall - Durham, NC
31 -  Groundzero - Spartanburg, SC

November
1 -   Exit/In - Nashville, TN
2 -  The Masquerade - Atlanta, GA
3 -  Walters - Houston, TX
4 -  The Shrine - Tulsa, OK
5 -  The Curtain Club - Dallas, TX
6 -  Come and Take It Live - Austin, TX
7 -  Jake's Sports Cafe - Lubbock, TX
8 -  Rockhouse Bar - El Paso, TX
9 -  Club Red - Mesa, AZ
10 - Gideon's Hall - Upland, CA
11 - Brick By Brick - San Diego, CA
12 - The Catalyst - Santa Cruz, CA
13 -  Rock hard PDX - Portland, OR
14 - Studio Seven - Seattle, WA
15 -  Rickshaw Theatre - Vancouver, BC
17 -  Metro Music Hall - Salt Lake City, UT
18 -  The Roxy Theatre - Denver, CO

A limited edition Full Dynamic Range silver vinyl edition of Entombed’s 1990 debut, Left Hand Path, is available via Earache Records. Exclusive for the Earache webstores, this album comes on a stunning silver vinyl, and is strictly limited to 500 copies.

Crushing guitars, guttural vocals all with an eye for deadly but catchy songs made Entombed's debut not just one of Earache's all time best selling albums but virtually kick started the whole Swedish death metal scene. Unmissable. Order here.

Tracklisting:

Side A:
“Left Hand Path”
“Drowned”
“Revel In Flesh”
“When Life Has Ceased”
“Supposed To Rot”

Side B:
“But Life Goes On”
“Bitter Loss”
“Morbid Devourment”
“Abnormally Deceased”
“The Truth Beyond”

Swedish metal crust punks, Martyrdöd, have signed a three-album deal with Century Media Records for the world excluding North America.

Philipp Schulte (Century Media Records Europe) comments on the signing: “The crust genre appears to me as one of the most vital extreme music genres right now, having brought up a lot of promising new bands, with Martyrdöd being among the spearheading acts of the scene. I got in touch with Martyrdöd’s guitarist Pontus some months ago, talking about his death metal band Miasmal, who are also signed to Century Media Records. When asking him whether Martyrdöd would be interested in a cooperation with us, he checked with the others and came back with a positive reply. So here we are now. We are very happy about the band’s trust in Century Media, and we are very much looking forward working with them on their upcoming studio albums!”

Martyrdöd, founded in Stockholm in 2001, have gained a strong following in the crust, punk and metal scenes worldwide with the release of six studio albums. Especially the band’s latest studio albums, Elddop (2014) and List (2016), have stirred up the extreme music scene massively, showing a new side of Martyrdöd by entwining more wicked melodies into the metal-induced crust songs. Influenced by acts like Wolfpack, At The Gates, Anti Cimex, Totalitär and Bathory, Martyrdöd is not your typical crust band, covering a far wider range of styles without ever losing focus on their roots.

The band comments on deal with Century Media Records: "Coming to an end of our previous recording contract we were open for offers. Several labels showed interest, but Century Media and Philipp had the most supportive proposal. We're very pleased to join their roster and will work hard to produce more Martyrdöd music. Together we're hopefully able to reach further touching even more cursed souls with our tunes."

Martyrdöd are currently in the process of writing new material for the successor of List, which is roughly scheduled for a release in the second half of 2018. More news to follow in the upcoming months.

Martyrdöd are (from left to right in the picture above):

Tim Rosenqvist - bass
Mikael Kjellman - guitars, vocals
Jens Bäckelin - D-beat
Pontus Redig - guitars

(Photo - Pjär Karlman)

A limited edition Full Dynamic Range silver vinyl edition of the 1993 Carcass classic, Heartwork, is available via Earache Records. There are only 500 copies available.

The amazing fourth effort from the kings of gore, remastered in Full Dynamic Range, allowing the music's nuances to shine through and giving the whole album a more ferocious and dynamic sound than ever before, and enabling the listener to immerse in the full audio heaviness like never before!

If you haven't got hold of a copy already then now's the time to check this classic out. This was the jump from primitive gore to a finely tuned killing machine that was made with ease... arguably the band's finest hour.

Order here.

Tracklisting:

“Buried Dreams”
“Carnal Forge”
“No Love Lost”
“Heartwork”
“Embodiment”
“This Mortal Coil”
“Arbeit Macht Fleisch”
“Blind Bleeding the Blind”
“Doctirnal Expletives”
“Death Certificate”

Hells Headbangers has set the release date for a special, long-overdue reissue of Black Death's self-titled debut album. The CD version will be released November 17th while the vinyl version - which includes a 12" and a 7" - will be released December 29th; the cassette tape version is out now.

Highly sought after by collectors, not only is Black Death a crucial piece in the rich history of Cleveland heavy metal, its original 1984 release marks the first full-length by an all-African-American heavy metal band. More than that, with the band's origins dating back to 1977, Black Death are largely known to be the first African-American metal band. But most of all, Black Death's lone album is a fucking classic of raw 'n' wild heavy fucking metal with a thirst for the epic and dramatic.

Black Death's original lineup consisted of Siki Spacek on lead vocals and lead guitar, Phillip Bullard on drums and percussion, bassist Daryl Harris, and guitarist Gregg Hicks. "This was the original, classic lineup of the band," says Spacek. "I met these guys waaaaaay back in 1977 while I was in the 11th grade, on the exact same day that I was expelled from school. At this point in time, I had already decided that music was the direction that I wanted to take my life in, and heavy metal was the perfect way to accomplish this goal."

Indeed, across the original version of Black Death - which consisted of a seven-song main LP and then a two-song 7", both of which Hells Headbangers will reproduce down to the same detail, including the original band logo as envisioned by Spacek - the four maniacs of Black Death create a towering work of true metal magick. The production is almost punkish, emitting a blown-out and garagey atmosphere, but this ably benefits this maniacal playing across the collective nine songs. Energy and electricity explode from every note, passion writ large across each time-evaporating minute; every player is giving it his all and going for the throat, finding that elusive balance between the barbaric and virtuosic. The songs themselves possess the swagger of red-blooded rock 'n' roll, but are generously daubed in the darkness and mystery of aeons-old metal. Imagine, if you will, Judas Priest's Sad Wings Of Destiny boosted with an OTT meanness or if Cirith Ungol were punks but indulged their Thin Lizzy tendencies more. Truly, Black Death is that awesome and awe-inspiring.
 
"I always wanted to create the ultimate HEAVY METAL band," Spacek states humbly, "a band that was able to cover the broad spectrum of the emotional realms of music that other artists like Jimi Hendrix, Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin had done but individually within their own respective bands; I wanted to create a heavy metal band that would have the best qualities of each these bands. I also had a visual look in mind of black leather and spandex with chains and studs, projecting a strong image befitting the band that I had in mind."

As for the oft-discussed issue of race, "Being an all-dark American heavy metal band was not a preconceived idea by any of us," Spacek says. "It was something that just happened to turn out that way. To us, and especially to me, we were a heavy metal band PERIOD. A coloring book is a coloring book no matter what different colors are used inside of them."

As fervent supporters of their hometown metal scene, Cleveland's Hells Headbangers will endeavor to make sure this massively anticipated reissue of Black Death's lone classic is of the highest standard, including making it available on both CD and cassette tape for the first time ever. "I have been asked how I feel about the upcoming reissue of the very first Black Death album," Spacek concludes. "There are a variety of emotions that I have, but the most important one is of relief - FINALLY! Not only will the congregations of heavy metal be able to have personal access to it, but I can finally get my own copy of the damn thing - hahaha! And we have Bill Peters along with Chase Horval and the whole gang at Hells Headbangers to thank for making this reissue a reality and for helping me to reclaim my musical legacy! But most importantly, I want to thank all of the fans who have stayed true and interested in the 'four dark horsemen of heavy metal' and its current incarnation, Black Death Resurrected! It's been a LOOOOOOONG time coming, mates - 33 years, in fact - but now it's finally made it here..."

Find preorders on Bandcamp.

Tracklisting:

Main LP

Side A
“Night Of The Living Dead”
“The Hunger”
“When Tears Run Red (From Love Lost Yesterday)”
“Fear No Evil”

Side B
“The Scream Of The Iron Messiah”
“Streetwalker”
“Black Death”

7”

Side A
“Here Comes The Wrecking Crew”

Side B
“Retribution”

The official lyric video for "Exit The Matrix", a brand new song from Canada's melodic thrashers THREAT SIGNAL, can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's long-awaited fourth studio album, "Disconnect", which will be released on November 10 via Agonia Records.

Since their critically acclaimed debut offering "Under Reprisal" (2006), which won the "Canadian Recording Of The Year Award" at the Hamilton Music Awards, THREAT SIGNAL became internationally recognized as one of the most interesting modern acts in thrash metal. Their latest two installments, the intense "Vigilance" (2009) and reinvented "Threat Signal" (2011), have both met with unrelenting hype, with each generating growing interest within the metal community. Combining the complexity of thrash metal, with a more contemporary groove sound involving technical rhythms and melodic musical passages, the band finally returns with its fourth studio album, "Disconnect".

Founder and vocalist Jon Howard commented: "Well, we made it to album number four! To say it's been a tough ride would be an understatement, but as the shit piles on, we'll keep shovelling that shit off!!

"So we began writing this album back in 2012, and continued writing over the next three years until we were able to hit the studio again. Basically, our thought process while writing was to not have an end goal of what the album should sound like. We didn't plan to make a really heavy album, or a melodic album, or take anyone else's input on what we should sound like. We basically just wrote songs with a clear and open mindset until 'Disconnect' grew together.

"This album ranges from melodic metal, to hard rock, to thrash metal, and even down to a chill acoustic tune, its a roller coaster of a ride while staying true to the THREAT SIGNAL sound. You will feel the energy from all of our previous albums plus something new.

"A big thanks to Agonia Records for believing in us and finally getting this album released. Also, a HUGE thanks to the fans for sticking with us over the years.

"I'd like to dedicate our album 'Disconnect' to my fallen friend and former THREAT SIGNAL drummer Norm Killeen. May you be jamming with the best of them in the next life!!! Peace and love".

"Disconnect" was recorded and produced by vocalist Jon Howard and lead guitarist Travis Montgomery. Mixing and mastering were done by Mark Lewis (DEVILDRIVER, WHITECHAPEL, BATTLECROSS, COAL CHAMBER). Artwork for the album was created by Ludovic Cordelieres of Rusalkadesign (KAMELOT).

"Disconnect" track listing:

01. Elimination Process02. Nostalgia03. Walking Alone04. Exit The Matrix05. Falling Apart06. Aura07. Betrayal08. To Thine Own Self Be True09. Dimensions10. Terminal Madness11. Eyes Sewn Shut

THREAT SIGNAL is:

Jon Howard - vocalsTravis Montgomery - guitarsPat Kavanagh - bassMatt Perrin - guitars

Bootleg footage of Arch Enemy performing in VosselaarBelgium on the Wages Of Sin tour in 2002 with former vocalist/current manager Angela Gossow fronting the band has been posted by Extreme Metal Uploads. Check it out below.

Setlist:

"Enemy Within"
"Heart of Darkness"
"The Immortal"
"Dark Insanity"
"Savage Messiah"
"Lament of a Mortal Soul"
"Behind the Smile"
"Pilgrim"
"Ravenous"
"Dead Bury Their Dead"
"Snow Bound"
"Shadows and Dust"

Back in January in an interview with the French language Hard Force, Gossow revealed that “when the time comes” she will launch a new extreme metal project.

Angela says she hopes to have time to launch the project in 2018, once things calm down in regards to her managerial duties with Arch Enemy.

Read the complete interview, in French, at HardForce.fr.

In September 2014, KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons made headlines when he declared in an Esquire article that rock was "finally dead." In the months and years that followed, many a musician has weighed in on the topic in a variety of interviews, with some digging a little deeper into Simmons's full comments and others just glossing over the headline.

In a brand new interview with Australia's Blood Sweat And Metal, NAPALM DEATH frontman Mark "Barney" Greenway offered his opinion on the topic, saying that rock "wasn't dead thirty years ago" and "it's not dead now."

Greenway said: "The thing is, when Gene Simmons says [that rock is dead], there's a strong possibility that he doesn't see underneath what is the big sellers or the medium-sized-selling bands — he doesn't see underneath that, so he doesn't see what goes on underneath the surface.

"I'm not a huge authority on it, but I know in Australia — let's make it specific to where you are — I know the underground scene in Australia, for many different styles of music — rock music, hard-edged music — is fantastic," he continued. "I know that some of the Australian punk scene around the Melbourne area, going back twenty, thirty years, was so uncontrolled and so spontaneous, so kind of quote-unquote dangerous at times. But it just makes it invigorating."

Greenway went on to say: "Gene Simmons, arguably — I mean, he's not here to answer for himself, obviously — but I would argue that he doesn't see underneath a certain level so he doesn't get that true spectrum of everything. He's just maybe saying rock is dead, because the people that he knows that are on the level that they are, or thereabouts, with KISS, perhaps aren't doing as well as they used to. Well, okay, fine. But there's a lot more to it than that."

"Again, I can't speak for Gene Simmons — he's not here to speak for himself. Maybe he does have a knowledge of music, but that's what I suspect — [that] he's only talking on a certain level. And, of course, underneath that, there's an obviously thriving musical scene that's very fertile."

Barney added: "To go back to the buzz phrase, if you like, rock isn't dead — it wasn't dead thirty years ago, it's not dead now.

"Just put it on the metal side of things, if we're gonna focus on that. I mean, IRON MAIDEN are, sort of, perhaps in the twilight of their years; BLACK SABBATH have gone now, effectively, whether they come back and do a few gigs here and there; METALLICA, okay, still going strong. And, again, I'm talking as not the biggest enthusiast of heavy metal. Who else is there? I don't know. And then when you look at all those truly big bands, well, they're not gonna be around forever. So I think his point maybe is, who's the really truly huge bands that are coming through? Maybe there won't be any. Maybe it'll stay at a certain level now and that'll be it. I mean, who knows? Who can say?"

NAPALM DEATH recently entered Parlour Studios in Kettering, Northamptonshire, England to begin recording its new album for an early 2018 release. Helming the sessions once again is producer Russ Russell, who has previously worked with THE HAUNTED and DIMMU BORGIR, among others.

BLACK SABBATH brought its farewell tour to an end in February in the band's hometown of Birmingham, England, but like many acts who've said goodbye, it's never really the end — as guitarist Tony Iommi explained to Express.co.uk in a new interview.

Tony said: "Who knows? We might at some point do one-off shows. There's nothing planned at all."

Asked if a new studio album could be on the cards even though touring is over, Iommi said: "I don't know. Nobody's talked about it. I think everybody wants to do their own thing at the moment. Ozzy's [Osbourne, vocals] certainly going to be out touring with his own band until God knows when. If anything, it's not going to be in the near future."

Iommi told U.K. online radio station Planet Rock earlier in the year that BLACK SABBATH hasn't "ruled anything out apart from me not wanting to tour anymore on that scale, but who knows, we may do something. We haven't spoken about it. But I'm sure something can happen somewhere."

"The End" was SABBATH's last tour because Iommi, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2012 and is currently in remission, can no longer travel for extended amounts of time. He admitted in a 2016 inteview: "It was only when I got ill, that's when I stated getting vulnerable. Before that, I could do anything... And they're going, 'You shouldn't be flying, really.' And, 'You shouldn't be doing this, you shouldn't be doing that.' So that's what brought that about — the end of this, really, because the constant touring does eventually get to you."

SABBATH wrote and recorded its 2013 reunion album, "13", and toured it all over the world while Iommi was going through treatment for his illness, with the guitarist having to fly back to England every six weeks.

The original lineup of SABBATH came together in 1969 with Iommi, Osbourne, Geezer Butler on bass and Bill Ward on drums. That lineup recorded and toured through 1978, and periodically reformed through the '90s and 2000s for live work.

They regrouped again in late 2011 for a new album and tour, although Ward dropped out after a few months over financial issues. SABBATH has used Ozzy's regular touring drummer Tommy Clufetos since then for live work. RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE's Brad Wilk laid down the drum tracks on "13", which came out in June 2013.

German hard rock veterans SCORPIONS have just finished recording a couple of new songs for a forthcoming compilation album that will collect the most popular of their ballad-type material.

"There's a best-of-ballads album coming out with Sony Music later this year, in the fall," SCORPIONS singer Klaus Meine said during yesterday's (Tuesday, September 12) SiriusXM Town Hall radio interview (see video below). "And they wanted us to come up with a couple of bonus tracks, and we went in the studio and everybody came up with great ideas. And before we came here [to do this interview], we just finished a recording session and listened to the first mixes and stuff, and it sounds pretty good. It's gonna be a 'best of ballads,' but with those new tracks. And it's gonna be a cool project."

Regarding how the idea for the collection came about, Klaus said: "Sony Music approached us and said, 'C'mon, guys. You have so many powerful songs. And we wanna put it together in some kind of compilation you guys never did before.' So that's coming out, I guess, in November."

Meine added that while the SCORPIONS are known in the U.S.A. mostly for their harder-edged material, like "Rock You Like A Hurricane", "in other parts of the world, SCORPIONS are very famous for the ballads, like 'Still Loving You' in France. And in Asia, they love the ballads, and in Russia, 'Wind Of Change' and all those songs are very powerful — equally as powerful as 'Rock You Like A Hurricane' here," he said. "So we talked about [doing] this. In different parts of the world, people like different types of music. So we can offer [a compilation that includes all the best of the softer songs]."

SCORPIONS' last release was 2015's "Return To Forever", partially comprising songs the band had in the vault from the '80s. It was the final recorded appearance of SCORPIONS' longtime drummer James Kottak, who was dismissed from the band in September 2016 during his well-publicized his battle with alcoholism. He has since been replaced by MOTÖRHEAD drummer Mikkey Dee.

SCORPIONS and MEGADETH will join forces for a North American tour which will kick off on September 14 in Reading, Pennsylvania and conclude on October 15 in Tampa, Florida. The sixteen-date trek, dubbed the "Crazy World Tour", celebrates SCORPIONS' 1990 LP of the same name. Two of the SCORPIONS' best-known songs, "Winds Of Change" and "Send Me An Angel", both appear on "Crazy World".



Scorpions LIVE with Eddie Trunk
Scorpions will be chatting LIVE with Eddie Trunk today on Trunk Nation! Have questions for the legendary German rockers? ??? Ask in the comments!

Posted by SiriusXM Radio on Tuesday, September 12, 2017

One of the highlights of FOREIGNER's fortieth-anniversary tour has been a handful of surprise appearances by original band members Lou Gramm, Dennis Elliott, Al Greenwood, Ian McDonald and Rick Wills at various stops along the trek. Inspired by these individual appearances, FOREIGNER will be joined by original members on stage for two-night special event on October 6 and October 7 at the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Michigan for the ultimate toast to forty years of rock and roll. This special event will be recorded for a forthcoming 2018 TV special, DVD and accompanying album release. Says FOREIGNER's leader and founder Mick Jones: "Playing alongside Lou, Dennis, Al, Ian and Rick again certainly brought back some special memories and we decided it would be the ultimate celebration to join together on one stage, and give the fans the best possible farewell to our fortieth anniversary." Four of the five surviving original members of FOREIGNER reunited for a three-song encore during the band's concert on July 20 at the Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre in Wantagh, New York. Singer Lou Gramm, keyboardist Al Greenwood and multi-instrumentalist Ian McDonald joined Mick Jones to perform "Long, Long Way From Home", "I Want To Know What Love Is" and "Hot Blooded". This marked the first time Jones, Gramm, Greenwood and McDonald had all shared a stage together since 1980.

During an appearance on the "Trunk Nation" show on SiriusXM channel Volume (106), Gramm, who learned two decades ago that he had what he called an "egg-sized tumor with tentacle-like appendages" in his frontal lobe, said that his health was "very good" at the moment "considering what I went through back in 1997." He explained: "I take care of myself explicitly. I've let go of all the alcohol and the drugs and that kind of life. And the life I'm leading now is probably what I should have been doing for all those years too. But I'm doing it now. And all my numbers are good, thank God. And after something like that, you can live a good, healthy life, but you have to really be serious about maintenance."

Gramm's tumor turned out to be benign and he recovered, but it took years to retrain himself as a singer. He told "Trunk Nation" that adhering to a healthier regimen has helped him keep his voice in shape while out on the road. "Huge! Big time!" he said. "I drink a lot of water and try not to drink sugar-loaded things or things that will create phlegm, like milk and stuff. There's just certain things that you can do to help yourself. I warm up extensively before a show — my voice, that is — singing scales and little pieces of our songs and such. I get a short massage to loosen up shoulders that are tight and shoulder blades and neck muscles that I'll have to really depend on to hit the high notes. It's just a number of things that I do for myself that are good, instead of like the old days, when I was young, I'd do anything I could that was bad for me [laughs], as long as it felt good."

Gramm and Jones's June 2013 performance of "I Want To Know What Love Is" and "Juke Box Hero" at the Songwriters Hall Of Fame in New York City marked the first time the pair has performed together in a decade after Gramm left FOREIGNER for a second time. Kelly Hansen has fronted the group since 2005. Jones is the sole remaining founding member in FOREIGNER's current lineup.

FOREIGNER's fortieth-anniversary tour — with support from CHEAP TRICK and JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE — kicked off July 11 in Syracuse.